LANSING – Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer is calling for redistricting reform after Rep. Marty Knollenberg announced his plans to run for Congress. Rep. Knollenberg currently sits on the Michigan House’s Redistricting Committee, which would allow him to draw the district in which he intends to run.

“This major conflict of interest is the latest example of why we need redistricting reform now,” Brewer said. “Elected officials should not draw a district in which they plan to seek future office. That’s wrong and it needs to be changed immediately.”

“I have no doubt Republicans like Rep. Knollenberg will try to gerrymander the districts to give Republicans the best chance of winning elections for the next 10 years,” added Brewer. “It’s not fair to the voters and it’s not fair to the process. Redistricting must be done in a fair, unbiased fashion. We believe elected officials should not have the power to design their own districts in order to directly benefit them. It is an obvious conflict of interest and it’s time we reformed the process.”